DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ We are 2 brothers who left corporate jobs to start our own sneaker company. Here's how we found our niche in a market dominated by big brands.
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-15 | by ( Katie Balevic | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

They create skateboarding and lifestyle shoes and hope to leave the company to their kids someday. The brothers, ages 50 and 41, respectively, have nearly 50 years of experience in the footwear industry between them, working at Vans, Converse, Supra Footwear, and Quiksilver, among others. AdvertisementBrandon: I had always drawn as a kid, but I didn't really take it seriously. Brandon: Of course, it'd be awesome to be a $200 million company, but do we need to grow it that big? Or do we need to grow it big enough to be a legacy company where eventually our kids work here with us?

Persons: Brandon, Josh Brubaker, —, Clearweather, There's, We're, Josh, Nobody, It's Organizations: Footwear, Service, Clearweather Footwear, Vans, Converse, Supra Footwear, Nike, Adidas Locations: California, Quiksilver

On Nov. 18, China’s Ministry of Public Security announced that authorities in northern Myanmar had handed over some 31,000 suspects. The Kokang Self-Administered Zone and the Wa Self-Administered Division both share a border with China and are heavily influenced by their bigger neighbor. The Ming family are not the only powerful Kokang families caught up in the drive. Wa police handed 194 Chinese nationals to Chinese authorities on Nov. 28, according to Wa's state media, Voice of Wa State. Others say that China is showing it won't tolerate the scams anymore, regardless of how powerful are the people behind them.

Persons: ”, Lu Jiantang, Jason Tower, Ming, Hu Xijin, ” Hu, Wei Qingtao, they’ll, ” Wei, Liu Zhengqi, Ming Xuechang, Kokang, Yin Masan, MNDAA, cyberscammers, Richard Horsey, “, Bai Suocheng, Li Kyar Wen, It’s, Wanqing Chen Organizations: China’s Ministry of Public Security, U.S . Congress, United States Institute of Peace, Communist Party, China’s Communist Party, CCTV, Global Times, of Public Security, Fully, Wa Construction Ministry, Wa Communist Party, Brotherhood Alliance, Arakan Army, Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, National Liberation Army, International Crisis Locations: BANGKOK, China, Myanmar, “, Wa, Kokang, Yunnan, Wa State, Shan, Arakan, cyberscams, Beijing

[1/6] A man sings for customers touring the Erhai lake on a sightseeing bus, in Dali, Yunnan province, China November 10, 2023. Many are former city-dwellers in search of an elusive prize in authoritarian China: Space for open discussion and exchange of ideas. POLICE OVERSIGHTThe local government has sought to attract young tech talent and in September asked digital nomads for input on policies, two community organisers told Reuters. Many digital nomads who use co-working spaces are involved with technologies like blockchain, according to organisers, which they say has drawn scrutiny from local authorities. Since digital nomads, unlike university students, "are not subject to structured discipline, they are harder to manage", she said.

Persons: Florence Lo, DALI, Trump, Xi Jinping, Minhua Ling, Dali, Xi's, Bai Yunxi, Xi, Bai, Chen Zhengyun, Chen, Ling, Laurie Chen, Katerina Ang Organizations: REUTERS, Geneva Graduate Institute, Reuters, Communist Party, Thomson Locations: Dali, Yunnan province, China, China's, Israel, Gaza, Yunnan, Beijing

☆ Chasing a Different China Dream, Young Digital Nomads Head for the Hills
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( Nov. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +6 min

Many are former city-dwellers in search of an elusive prize in authoritarian China: Space for open discussion and exchange of ideas. POLICE OVERSIGHTThe local government has sought to attract young tech talent and in September asked digital nomads for input on policies, two community organisers told Reuters. Many digital nomads who use co-working spaces are involved with technologies like blockchain, according to organisers, which they say has drawn scrutiny from local authorities. "We are more low-key and don't emphasise digital nomads in our marketing anymore," one co-working space staffer told Reuters, adding that conservative local governments in rural towns like Dali are "cautious of emerging technologies". Since digital nomads, unlike university students, "are not subject to structured discipline, they are harder to manage", she said.

Persons: Laurie Chen DALI, Trump, Xi Jinping, Minhua Ling, Dali, Xi's, Bai Yunxi, Xi, Bai, Chen Zhengyun, Chen, Ling, Laurie Chen, Katerina Ang Organizations: Geneva Graduate Institute, Reuters, Communist Party Locations: China, China's, Israel, Gaza, Dali, Yunnan, Beijing

JOHANNESBURG/LONDON, Nov 15 (Reuters) - Zambia's official creditors including China rejected a deal the country struck with its international bondholders because they believed its "base case" scenario did not deliver debt relief comparable to what they offered in a separate deal, two sources familiar with the talks said. Official creditors said the agreement in principle, which the International Monetary Fund (IMF) also rejected, did not comply with "Comparability of Treatment", said the sources, who declined to be identified as the discussions are private. Both bondholders and official creditors had proposed extending the maturity of Zambia's debt and that it be paid back quicker if the country's economy performs better than expected. The bondholder deal proposed they would be paid more than $700 million before 2026 in the base case, while official creditors had offered a longer three-year grace period. Bondholders would need to offer more debt relief in the base case scenario for the deal to be acceptable to official creditors and the IMF, one of the sources said.

Persons: Rachel Savage, Karin Strohecker, Marc Jones, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: International Monetary Fund, IMF, Paris Club, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: JOHANNESBURG, LONDON, China, Zambia

The capacity payments will be calculated based on fixed costs of 330 yuan ($45.25) per kilowatt per year for coal plants. Analysts said the move was important to ensure the financial viability of seldom-utilised, backup coal power, which is used for demand peaks or when renewable power generation is insufficient. However, observers also cautioned that the policy could risk entrenching inefficient coal power in China's energy system, despite its rapid expansion of renewable power generation capacity. "Capacity-based electricity pricing for coal power will further incentivise state-owned enterprises in China to build new coal power projects in the short term. Capacity payments should be for all power producers, not only for coal power," said Zhang Kai, deputy program director for Greenpeace East Asia in Beijing.

Persons: David Fishman, Xuewan Chen, Group's Fishman, Zhang Kai, Colleen Howe, Andrew Hayley, Edmund Klamann, Muralikumar Anantharaman, Kim Coghill Organizations: National Development, Reform Commission, Reuters, Analysts, Lantau, LSEG, Jinneng Holding, Power Co, Centre for Research, Energy, Clean, Greenpeace East, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, China, Shanghai, Beijing, Shanxi, Jiangxi Ganneng, Hunan, Greenpeace East Asia

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsBEIJING/SHANGHAI, Oct 30 (Reuters) - China will send Wu Zhaohui, a Vice Minister of Science and Technology, to a global summit on artificial intelligence this week in Britain, two sources familiar with the matter said. Former Prime Minister Tony Blair visited Beijing earlier this month and met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, as Beijing seeks to boost ties with the Labour party ahead of a general election likely next year. China's science ministry and foreign ministry, as well as the Chinese Academy of Sciences, did not respond immediately to faxed requests for comment. Wu was appointed to his role in the science ministry in December 2022. Like many countries around the world, China has been caught up in a global craze over generative AI following the popularity of OpenAI's ChatGPT last year.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Wu Zhaohui, James, Boris Johnson, Tony Blair, Wang Yi, Wu, Xi Jinping, OpenAI's ChatGPT, Laurie Chen, Brenda Goh, Miral Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Science, Technology, Labour, Chinese Academy of Sciences, HK, Foreign, Commonwealth, Development, Thomson Locations: Rights BEIJING, SHANGHAI, China, Britain, Beijing, British, London, Hong Kong, United States, Shanghai

☆ At Rosemead High, generations of students were harassed or groomed for sex as they tried to get an education
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( Matt Drange | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +87 min

Students were regularly subjected to sexual harassment by Hall, two former students told me. “I feel like so many of us were victims to the culture,” one former Rosemead student told Insider. Manipulation by a trusted adult has been passed like a virus to generations of Rosemead students. AdvertisementThe Shops at Santa Anita in Arcadia have long been a local haunt for Rosemead High students. We wondered aloud whether Masiello had harassed our mother the same way he'd done to generations of Rosemead students.

Persons: Clara didn't, She'd, Alex Rai, Eric Burgess, Burgess, Rai, Clara, they'd, Rai texted, she'd, who'd, Mark Abramson, Rai didn't, Leonard Levine, — I'm, Alex Rai wasn't, wouldn't, Rosemead, RubyAnna Sare, Sare, Harlan Mayne, Mayne, Dwain Crum, he'd, colluded, Crum, Robin Torres, Torres, Edward Zuniga, Zuniga, Paul Arevalo, Kristy, Jim Hall, Hall, groped, Angela, Diane Bladen, Bladen, Michael Sullivan, Sullivan, Denton Todd, Todd, Barbara, Arevalo, Barbara said, Matt Drange, Andrew Dalton, Dalton, ” Mark Abramson, I've, Will, Suzy, Carly Sanchez, Sanchez, aren't, —, David Pitts —, Pitts, Cindy, Scriabin, David Pitts, couldn't, That's, G, You'd, It's, Wing Chan, Chan, Louis Vuitton, Justin Rosien, Rosien, Rosien texted, cringed, Jim Hall's, Don Masiello, Paul Arevalo's, Sergio Caveyo, Caveyo, Brian Day, Alex, messaged, Brian Aliff, Aliff, Nichole, I'd, scoot, Michelle, Michelle's, Michelle didn't, Sarah, Brian Bristol, didn't, Nichole's, Weeks, Herbert Ortiz, Jaime, Ortiz, Richard Daniels, Daniels, Fidel Dominguez, Rosemead High's, Larry Callaham, Masiello, Jan Herzog, Herzog, Justin Fregoso, James Eder, Fregoso, me Eder, Eder, they've, Anne Bazile, Bazile, Unbeknownst, Arevalo —, Jonathan Howard, Credentialing, Howard, Elaine Rose, Rose, El Monte Union High School District Arevalo, he's, José Gallegos, Gallegos, Billie, Jo Grant, Grant, Michael Cohen, Cohen, Santa Claus, Oz, California's, haven't, Lupe Nieves, Nieves, reenacted, faxed, Harold Greenberg, Dan Morris, Morris, Alex Valdez, J, Valdez, alums, Heidi, Guillermo, she's, Clara wasn't, Mark Matthews, Matthews, Rai groped, Janine Salanitro, Zuniga hasn't, Felipe Salazar, Salazar, Andrew Dalton's, Matt Drange’s Organizations: Business, Rosemead High School, Rosemead High, Rosemead, El Monte Union High School District, Sheriff's Department, TA, El Monte Union High School, X's, Ford, Business Insider, Casa del Rey, Nissan, Nike, Bristol, Arroyo High School, High School, Los, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, Perris High School, of Education, Angeles County Sheriff's Department, California, California Department of Education, Monte Union High School, Valdez, Gabrielino, Rai, Los Angeles County Sheriff's, Temple City Locations: Southern California, Rosemead, San Gabriel Valley, San Gabriel, Los Angeles, Huntington Beach, Pasadena, Bladen, California, Arevalo, Utah, Santa, Arcadia, Beverly Hills, Burgess, Bristol, Arroyo, Perris, California's, Angeles, Cindy's, Los Angeles County, Temple

☆ Your Will Alone Won’t Guarantee Your Money Goes to Your Heirs
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-01 | by ( Ashlea Ebeling | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

When Dr. James Rocconi’s third wife left him, he rushed to update his will and other estate-planning documents to ensure she would get nothing when he died. But since the handwritten change he faxed to his insurance company wasn’t accepted, his three children from his first marriage ended up in a six-year legal fight with her over the benefits after he died in 2017.

Persons: James Rocconi’s, wasn’t

BEIJING, Sept 22 (Reuters) - A leading activist in China's #MeToo movement went on trial for subversion on Friday, according to several diplomats and a spokesperson for a campaign group calling for her release. The day before her arrest, Huang had been scheduled to fly to Britain to begin a master's degree at the University of Sussex on a British government-funded scholarship, the campaign group spokesperson said. Huang, an independent journalist who covered Chinese #MeToo allegations and the 2019 Hong Kong anti-government protests, had been detained by Chinese police for three months in late 2019. The campaign group spokesperson said the charges of sedition against her and Wang were based on the gatherings the two activists often held for Chinese youth during which they discussed social issues. The police did not respond to a faxed request to comment on the allegations made by the campaign spokesperson.

Persons: Huang Xueqin, Wang Jianbing, Huang, Wang, Laurie Chen, Miral Organizations: People's, University of Sussex, Police, British Foreign Office, Hong, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, China's, Guangzhou, United States, Britain, Germany, France, Netherlands, Beijing, Hong Kong

REUTERS/Aly Song/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsHONG KONG, Sept 1 (Reuters) - China is set to take further action including relaxing home-purchase restrictions as it scrambles to tackle a deepening crisis in its massive debt-riddled property sector, four people familiar with the matter said. They plan to act as existing policies failed to sustain a sector rebound earlier this year, the people added. The property sector accounts for roughly a quarter of the world's second-largest economy. However, it is in the throes of an unprecedented debt crisis that market participants fear could spread throughout the financial sector at home and beyond. They also reduced the downpayment ratio to no lower than 20% for first-home buyers and no lower than 30% for second-home purchases.

Persons: Aly, Morgan Stanley, Julie Zhu, Jane Xu, Sumeet Chatterjee, Christopher Cushing Organizations: REUTERS, Regulators, Council, Information Office, Reuters, Housing, People's Bank of China, National Administration of Financial, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, China, HONG KONG, Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou

☆ Exclusive: China plans to cut stamp duty on stocks by up to 50% to revive confidence-sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The proposal to reduce the current 0.1% stamp duty on securities trading suggested a cut of either 20% or 50%, which would be the first such reduction since 2008, the two people said. China's securities regulator also met with representatives from top Western asset managers on Friday to reassure them about the country's economic prospects, Reuters reported citing sources. China's fiscal revenue totalled 20.37 trillion yuan ($3.02 trillion) last year, with 276 billion yuan or 1.35% contributed by stamp duty on securities transactions, official data showed. Earlier this month, Bloomberg first reported Chinese authorities were considering cutting the stamp duty on stock trades. "Cutting stamp duty doesn't solve the problems that hamper China's economic growth."

Persons: Aly, Xie Chen, Huang Yan, Huang, Sumeet Chatterjee, Lincoln, Kim Coghill Organizations: REUTERS, Regulators, Ministry of Finance, State Council, Information Office, of Finance, China Securities Regulatory Commission, Shanghai Jianwen Investment Management Co, Bond, Reuters, Bloomberg, Shanghai QiuYang, Shanghai, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, China, HONG KONG, BEIJING, Beijing, Hong Kong

☆ Exclusive: China plans to cut stamp duty on stock trading by up to 50% to revive sentiment-sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The proposal to reduce the current 0.1% stamp duty on securities trading suggested a cut of either 20% or 50%, which would be the first such cut since 2008, the two people said. The CSRC also said stablising the stock market was a priority. "A cut in stamp duty (on stock trading) can help decrease investment cost and boost trading activity," analysts at broker Topsperity Securities said in a note. "Compared with previous policy measures, a cut in stamp duty may have a stronger effect in repairing investor confidence. Earlier this month, Bloomberg first reported Chinese authorities were considering cutting the stamp duty on stock trades.

Persons: Sumeet Chatterjee Organizations: Ministry of Finance, State Council, Information Office, of Finance, China Securities Regulatory Commission, Bond, Reuters, Topsperity Securities, Bloomberg, Shanghai, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, BEIJING, headwinds, Beijing, Hong Kong, Lincoln

☆ China plans to cut stamp duty on stock trading by up to 50% to revive sentiment
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Chinese authorities are planning to cut the stamp duty on domestic stock trading by as much as 50%, three people with knowledge with the matter said, in a further attempt to revitalize the country's struggling stock market. The proposal to reduce the current 0.1% stamp duty on securities trading suggested a cut of either 20% or 50%, which would be the first such cut since 2008, the two people said. The quantum of the cut, which has not been reported before, is likely to be set at 50%, they said. The State Council Information Office, which handles media queries on behalf of the government, did not immediately respond to a faxed request for comment. The Ministry of Finance and the China Securities Regulatory Commission, or CSRC, did not immediately respond either.

Organizations: Ministry of Finance, State Council, Information Office, of Finance, China Securities Regulatory Commission

China operates talent programs at various levels of government, targeting a mix of overseas Chinese and foreign experts. China has previously said its overseas recruitment through the TTP aimed to build an innovation-driven economy and promote talent mobility, while respecting intellectual property rights, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency. It said that anyone who recommends a candidate who is then selected for the talent programs would receive "diamonds, bags, cars, and houses". In some cases, these people said, those experts will be offered roles at Chinese chip companies' overseas operations. ($1 = 7.1475 Chinese yuan renminbi)Reporting by Julie Zhu, Fanny Potkin, Eduardo Baptista and Michael Martina; editing by David CrawshawOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Florence Lo, Xi Jinping, Qiming, Dean Boyd, Nick Marro, Chen Biaohua, Chen, Ma Yuanxiao, Dawei Di, Di, Zhuji, Julie Zhu, Fanny Potkin, Eduardo Baptista, Michael Martina, David Crawshaw Organizations: REUTERS, Washington, Reuters, China, Ministry of Industry, Information Technology, U.S . Commerce Department, Xinhua, Ministry of Science, Technology, U.S, government's National Counterintelligence and Security Center, Economist Intelligence, China Center for Information Industry Development, China Semiconductor Industry Association, Qiming, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard, Stanford, HK, LinkedIn, Hangzhou Juqi Technology, Fortune, Beijing Institute of Technology, BIT's School of Integrated Circuits, Electronics, Britain's University of Nottingham, University of Hong, BIT, Communist Party's Organization Department, Zhejiang University, Communist Party, Thomson Locations: China, HONG KONG, SINGAPORE, WASHINGTON, U.S, China's, Qiming, Beijing, Hangzhou, ResearchGate, University of Hong Kong, Ma, Zhejiang, Wenzhou, Cambridge

☆ Exclusive: China's Xiaomi wins state planner nod to make EVs amid glut in autos
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | by ( Julie Zhu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

A man walks past a logo of Xiaomi, a Chinese manufacturer of consumer electronics, outside a shop in Mumbai, India, May 11, 2022. Xiaomi, which owns the world's third largest smartphone brand by shipments, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Xiaomi plans to produce about 100,000 EVs next year, said one of the sources. But Xiaomi, which reported an 18.9% drop in its latest quarterly revenue in May, has its own compulsions for foraying into EVs. Xiaomi plans to use the thousands of stores it has as showrooms for its electric cars, Reuters previously reported.

Persons: Francis Mascarenhas, HONG KONG, Xiaomi, Tesla, NDRC, MIIT, Lei Jun, Julie Zhu, Muralikumar Organizations: REUTERS, Xiaomi Corp, HK, National Development, Reform Commission, EV, Ministry of Industry, Reuters, Lucid, Beijing Daily, China Passenger Car Association, Thomson Locations: Mumbai, India, HONG, Beijing, Shanghai, Reuters U.S, China, China ., EVs

The move, which not been reported before, is the latest in tightening scrutiny of Chinese companies' offshore listings, and comes at a time when Beijing is stepping up controls over cross-border transfer of sensitive information. The Chinese law firms acting as IPO advisors have been asked to drop such boilerplate risk disclosures, said one of the people, who declined to be identified as the discussions were confidential. China's new offshore listing rules that came into effect on March 31 forbid any comments in the listing documents that "misrepresent or disparage laws and policies, business environment and judicial situation" of China. Representatives from the CSRC's International Cooperation Department, more than 10 Chinese law firms and other government and industry bodies attended the July 20th meeting, according to one of the people. Large domestic law firms Fangda Partners, Han Kun Law Offices，and Zhong Lun Law Firm were among the attendees, said two of the sources.

Persons: prospectuses, CSRC, Han, Zhong, Han Kun, Zhong Lun, Julie Zhu, Kane Wu, Selena Li, Sumeet Chatterjee, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: China Securities Regulatory Commission, CSRC's International Cooperation Department, Fangda Partners, Zhong Lun Law, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, United States, The China

HONG KONG, July 18 (Reuters) - China plans to appoint the CEO of state-owned telecoms giant China Unicom (0762.HK), (600050.SS), Liu Liehong, as the head of its new national data bureau, four sources said, putting him in charge of efforts to make the country a digital superpower. China announced plans for the data bureau in March as part of a sweeping government reshuffle. Its formation is part of efforts to achieve President Xi Jinping's vision of a "digital China", where data is managed alongside labour and capital as a key economic driver. China's internet regulator, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), will also transfer some staff to the data bureau, said one source. "Whether Mr. Liu Liehong will take up any role in the National Data Bureau shall be subject to the decision of the PRC government," it added.

Persons: Liu Liehong, Liu, Xi, China Unicom, Julie Zhu, Kevin Huang, Jane Xu, Brenda Goh, Sam Holmes Organizations: HK, National Data Bureau, Reuters, China, Tech Development Department, Cyberspace Administration of China, CAC, Information Office, National, Bureau, China Electronics Technology Group Corporation, Ministry of Industry, Information Technology, Communist Party, Committee, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, China, Hong Kong, Chengdu, Sichuan province

☆ Joseph Pedott, 91, Dies; Made Chia Pets an ‘as Seen on TV’ Sensation
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Alex Traub | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Joseph Pedott, whose decades of commercials for the zany plantlike figurines known as Chia Pets launched them into the pantheon of American consumer culture, died on June 22 in San Francisco. The origins of the Chia Pet’s popularity can be traced to March 1977, when Mr. Pedott (pronounced PEE-dot), an independent advertising executive, wandered around a Chicago home and housewares trade expo looking for new clients. “He said, ‘There’s this stupid item called the Chia Pet. I don’t know why anybody buys it,’” Mr. Pedott later recalled. The sales executive faxed Mr. Pedott a picture of the stupid item in question.

Persons: Joseph Pedott, Chia Pets, Sherry Ettleson, Pedott, ’, faxed Mr Locations: San Francisco, Chicago, Oaxaca, Mexico

REUTERS/Siyi LiuAustralian trade data shows exports worth A$60.5 million ($41.04 million) of copper ore and concentrate to China in January, though the cargoes have not appeared in Chinese customs data. It was the first month of exports since December 2020, Australian data showed. Copper ore and concentrate imports are likely to resume if the talks go well, according to an official surnamed Wang at a Chinese copper smelter, who said smelters want extra supply from Australia. China imported just over one million tonnes of copper ore and concentrate from Australia in 2019, according to customs data, worth about $1.67 billion at the time. Australian trade data showed A$78,000 worth of barley exports to China in January, the first since November 2020.

HONG KONG, May 10 (Reuters) - China will appoint Li Yunze as the head of a new financial regulator as part of a broader restructuring of its financial regulatory regime, three sources with knowledge of the matter said on Wednesday. Li, 52, a banking veteran and currently vice governor of southwestern Sichuan province, will take the helm of the National Financial Regulatory Administration (NFRA), the sources told Reuters. The NFRA is a new government body under the State Council tasked to supervise the multi-trillion dollar financial industry, excluding the securities sector. Li has a relatively low-profile in the sector compared to previous financial regulatory heads. In 2018, he was appointed as vice governor of Sichuan province.

HONG KONG, May 4 (Reuters) - China's biggest financial data provider Wind Information Co told some customers late last year that it was restricting offshore users from accessing certain business and economic data as a result of the cybersecurity regulator's new data rules, two sources said. Restricted access to Wind by offshore users comes as China sharpens its focus on data usage and security amid rising geopolitical tensions and concerns about privacy in the world's second-largest economy. A Wind salesperson told the source in September the company had made the changes as per instructions from the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), which asked it to stop providing offshore users with certain data. The restrictions on offshore users' access to certain Wind data have expanded since last September, said the first source. Reuters has reported, citing sources that Chinese data providers including company databases Qichacha, partially owned by Wind, and TianYanCha have stopped opening to offshore users for at least months.

Hong Kong CNN —Fang Bin, a retailer turned citizen journalist who documented the early outbreak of Covid-19 in Wuhan, has been released after more than three years detention in China, a family member told CNN. In one video, Fang, a Wuhan resident who sold clothing, showed hospital corridors crowded with patients and their desperate relatives. Rights groups had repeatedly called for Fang’s release and information about his case and of others who were also detained after sharing information about Wuhan outbreak. Both had reported on China’s initial Covid outbreak in Wuhan in early 2020. Authorities have never confirmed how many people had been detained or prosecuted in connection with sharing information on the pandemic.

☆ A personal finance expert who teaches people how to get out of debt shares the 4 smartest steps she took to pay down $35,000 worth of credit card debt in 2.5 years
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Kathleen Elkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

When Tiffany Aliche found herself in $35,000 worth of credit card debt, she took four initial steps. What's more, "I had $35,000 in credit card debt as a result of a scam," she said. "The credit card debt was significantly more expensive than any other debt that I had, which is true for most people," she noted. The average credit card interest rate was 20.40% in the fourth quarter of 2022. Here are the first four steps she took to tackle her credit card debt.

Search resuls for: "faxed"

25 mentions found